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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 December 2008
The analysis of spectra obtained with ground based and space based facilities relies on the availability of high quality atomic and molecular data. In this paper, we shortly describe the most relevant data bases for the actual and forthcoming facilities at millimeter, submillimeter and far infrared wavelengths. We discuss how the data bases are organized and implemented, and we present recent advances in the general framework of the Virtual Observatory, aimed at making the access to the molecular physics data both easier and better documented to the final user. We stress that this essential scientific activity should receive proper acknowledgment from astronomers, through referencing of the use of both the original data and the data bases.